I’m Bored (With Food)
Cooking has changed for me since the boys have moved out. It’s only by having some time to live in this new reality that something has become clear: When I was feeding my family on a nightly basis, cooking was more than just cooking. It was nurturing. It was actively trying to bring the family joy, to nourish them and make them strong. It was a nightly attempt at serving them just the right food - food appropriate for that day, and those circumstances.
In the transition to cooking for just Lori and myself, I appreciated that my cadence could shift. Instead of being a daily ritual, it has become something done every other, or every third day. And our primary requirement being that the food serve as good, healthy “fuel” - which, for us, means mostly meat and vegetables. This has netted out to me roasting a lot of chicken thighs and vegetables, and making a lot of salads.
These dishes can and should be delicious. But it’s impossible for them to not have some degree of monotony. It was only this past Friday, when we attended a potluck dinner that my enjoyment of cooking perked up. I committed to bringing the proteins (chicken and beef/lamb), and because I was feeling frisky, I also made a batch of hummus as a bonus contribution. Thinking through the logistics of cooking these things, working backward from 6:30pm Friday night and planning when I would make the marinade, form the meat loaves, cook the chickpeas, etc. - this all engaged me in ways I hadn’t experienced in quite a while.
Seeing people positively react to food that I made offers a little hit of dopamine. That’s what I’ve been missing. It’s hard to find that “high” when I’ve been keeping my cooking so bloody simple.
To be fair, I want to keep things simple most of the time - both for my health and for my schedule. I have shifted my use of time away from the kitchen for the time being. So, I’m not moping. But cooking for the most part has become a more tedious, basic chore. This is fine for now. I don’t expect this mode to last forever. In the meantime, just know that if you invite us to a potluck, the answer will be a quick “yes” if we don’t have other commitments on the calendar.
Sunday Supper
The Friday potluck was centered around a Mediterranean theme. This Kefta recipe is not exactly how I made it on Friday, but it’s close. This Shish Tawook Chicken Kebab recipe yields the platonic ideal of the dish, in my opinion. This hummus recipe was a major breakthrough for me in a number of ways: Making the tahini-garlic sauce separate from pureeing the cooked chickpeas, then whisking them together allowed me to really control the flavor balance. Cooking the chickpeas for a long time, and with some baking soda in the water made this the smoothest texture I had ever achieved with this dish. And lastly, this particular brand of tahini was also a game changer. Ingredients matter! If you are serious about your hummus, I strongly encourage you to give this a try.
Sunday Music
Before we get to the music, first you should check out Mo Amer’s comedy bit about making hummus. Man, do I love listening to Lianne La Havas. This Morning Jazz Vinyl set will get your Sunday off and rolling quite nicely as well. Enjoy!
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Have a great week ahead! You can do anything you set your mind to. Let me know how I can help.
Peace & Love,